Badreddine Al-Wahaibi - Tunisia

Tunisian society receives this year - as is the case in other Islamic countries - the month of Ramadan exceptionally, since the Corona virus was applied with its jaws to the world, and the traditions that accompany this holy month are under severe safeguards, affecting social, family and even food habits and practices.

The epidemic imposed on the Tunisians to amend the components of their Ramadan tables, which have long been decorated with many traditional food items, the preparation of which is a source of livelihood for many of the women whose Ramadan provides them with an opportunity to sell the Ramadan food prepared in popular stores and stores.

"Al-Malsawqa" and "Al-Tabouna" bread, in addition to "Al-Nawasir" and "Sherbet Al-Bared" and many handcrafted foods are considered the cultural heritage of food for the Tunisian people, which citizens have always flocked to in Ramadan, but this year, unlike usual, they became captive to the shelves of shops and the virus.

The decline in demand for Tunisian cake bread due to the spread of Corona (Al-Jazeera)

Understood fears

The Corona virus has awakened health-related concerns among Tunisians, whose current fear mainly stems from the consumption of these traditionally made foodstuffs from the method of preparation, which is often based on kneading, baking and slicing manually, and is prepared in private home kitchens.

Mr. Fathi (Foodstuff Trader) says that the demand for canned food has doubled in the last days leading up to Ramadan, while he noticed the decline in customer demand for traditional hand-made foods, despite the measures that he had taken in displaying products from wrapping, blocking touch and inspection.

 Tunisian traditional food products that are in low demand (Al-Jazeera)

He adds that the issue is not only concerned with the transmission of infection by preparing foods manually, but also because of the quarantine residues that obligated the Tunisians to the homes, and stopped their professional activities, which led them to resort to canned foods that are low in price compared to traditional materials.

The WHO guidelines for countries and individuals, published on the official website of the Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, stipulate that "the possibility of disease spreading due to contact with animals, contact with contaminated food, or transmission from person to person", without specifying a clear concept of contaminated food.

Another aspect of traditional Tunisian food products (Al Jazeera).

Livelihoods are at stake

The seasonal activities in the traditional food industries associated with Ramadan are considered a livelihood that is expected for housewives who do not have sufficient financial income, and they depend on their special skills in preparing Ramadan foods, and they market them by displaying them in stores and stores.

Samira (45 years old) - a domestic worker who has been kept out of the spread of the virus - says that she has been practicing for years the "Al-Salwaqa" and "Al-Nawasir" industries, but was surprised that some stores refused to buy their products because of the stagnant demand for them, which led them to accept their offer and hold accountable for the quantities that Sold only.

Samira: The recession will inevitably put us in financial trouble to face Ramadan expenses and Eid Al-Fitr expenses (Al-Jazeera)

Our interlocutor believes that the stagnation of this activity will inevitably put it in financial hardship to face Ramadan expenses and Eid Al-Fitr expenses, and considers that consumers overestimate the transmission, since all foods will be automatically subject to cooking again, which will eliminate the virus, if any.

There are no statistics related to the number of women practicing these activities, which are known to peak during the month of Ramadan, but they continue at a lower rate throughout the year, therefore the Tunisian Ministry of Women, Family, Childhood and the Elderly seeks to attract them by providing funding lines to enable them economically. 

Traditional home-made food products absent from Tunisian tables, fearing Corona (Al-Jazeera)

alternative solutions

The alternative solutions that accompany Tunisian food habits in the month of Ramadan differ from one region to another according to the rates of urbanization and full-time, as housewives in cities and urban areas resort to relatively dispensing with some traditionally prepared foods and replacing them with canned industrial products, despite the consensus of different flavor and taste.

Latifa (40 years old) - an employee - says that her fears of buying pastries and traditionally prepared foods increase daily with the outbreak of the Corona pandemic, so she does not rule out dispensing this year exceptionally, and reluctantly compensating her with industrial ones, adding that she will probably depend on the recipes provided by some sites whenever She had the opportunity.

The Tunisian rural areas are the most suitable place for reconciliation with the roots and nutritional traditions, as housewives provide the requirements of the month of Ramadan by preparing them in advance themselves, despite the shortage of some basic materials that accompanied the spread of the Corona epidemic in Tunisia.

Hamida (55 years) believes that for years she has been preparing food supplies intended for consumption during the month of Ramadan due to her complete emptiness, and to provide a room for the provisions in her home, so she says - smiling - that her table will not know any deficiency as customs and traditions took place decades ago.

Throughout history, the nutritional legacies of Tunisians have experienced periods similar to the current crisis of the Coronavirus, but they remain present to this day and the popular memory is circulated from one generation to another, even if the stomachs are absent sometimes.